IRF ROUNDTABLE MULTI-FAITH LETTER ON VIETNAM’S PERSECUTION AND RESTRICTIONS ON CAO DAI FOLLOWERS DURING THEIR CENTENNIAL
January 31, 2024
The Honorable Omar Zniber, President of the United Nations Human Rights Council
The Honorable Antony Blinken, Secretary of State of the United States of America
The Honorable Rashad Hussain, U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom
Ambassador Robert Rehak, Chair of the International Religious Freedom and Belief Alliance (IRFBA)
Commissioners of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)
The Honorable Congressman Christopher Smith, Co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
The Honorable James McGovern, Co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
Re: Millions of Cao Dai followers wish to celebrate their religion’s Centennial at their Cao Dai temples
We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, write to respectfully seek your support for the millions of Cao Dai followers who need to regain access to their places of worship in Vietnam in time to celebrate, in late 2025, the centennial anniversary of the founding of their Cao Dai Religion.
Practically all Cao Dai temples, including the central temple located in Tay Ninh Province (popularly known as the “Tay Ninh Holy See”), are being occupied by a religious sect created by the Vietnamese Government in 1997 and recently found to be a “racketeering enterprise” by a U.S. court.
The Vietnamese Government abolished the Sacerdotal Council of the Cao Dai Religion in the early 1980s and in 1997 replaced it with a government-created religious sect. The government transferred possession of the Tay Ninh Holy See to this “1997 Sect” and supported sect members to systematically seize some 300 local Cao Dai temples, often using force and/or with the support of the public security police.
Sect members at all levels have committed innumerable atrocities against Cao Dai followers, including beating, abduction, attempted murder, trespassing, interfering with religious services, expropriating property, demolishing graves, blocking funerals, etc. These atrocities have been documented in many U.S. government reports. For instance:
“Of the more than 300 Cao Dai temples in Vietnam, all but approximately 15 have been seized by the government-sponsored 1997 Sect during the previous two decades… Between April 20 and June 30, the 1997 Sect demolished at least 15 graves at Cuc Lac Thai Binh Cemetery belonging to independent Cao Dai followers whose families refused to join the 1997 Sect.” (US Commission on International Religious Freedom’s report for the year 2018)
“On September 11 and 13, for example, members of the recognized Cao Dai Sect (Cao Dai 1997) disrupted the rite of unregistered Cao Dai members (Cao Dai 1926) at a private residence in Ben Cau District, Tay Ninh Province.“ (US State Department’s 2020 International Religious Freedom Report)
On August 16, 2023, the District Court for Dallas County, Texas, ruled that the 1997 Sect and its leader, Mr. Nguyễn Thành Tám, engaged in racketeering activities in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1962(c), the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, which targets criminal enterprises, and must pay for damages caused to two Cao Dai followers and a Cao Dai Temple in Dallas, Texas.
The aspiration of all Cao Dai followers in Vietnam and among the diaspora is to celebrate, in late 2025, the 100th anniversary of the founding of their religion at their Tay Ninh Holy See and their hundreds of local temples throughout Vietnam. Your support for this legitimate endeavor is urgently requested.
Respectfully Yours,